I took my car out on the track for its first time June 16th to a local Auto X event. I haven’t found the limits of this car, it is far more capable than the driver.

 

Your suspension is no joke. The C4 was the first production car that could hold 1G in a corner. It was way ahead of the tire technologies at that time. If you pushed the stock car hard the tires would over heat. They had to make the tires super hard so they did not tear. Yes the C5 was better but not by much. Do you know the overall weight and how well it is centered? The 3rd gen camaro was pretty light, the C4’s were loaded with a lot tech and I am curious how that played out.

Do you consider yourself a driver or a builder? Have you done Autocross before? Maybe you just need more seat time. I have a friend that drove F1 and he taught Autocross to amateurs. He said he could tell the difference between the guys that used home simulators and the guys that did not. He suggested a mid range driving simulator with a direct drive wheel for practice.



Not saying this is right for you just passing along info that kind of surprised me. This guy drove F1 cars in the 80’s so he is not a young pup.



Thanks again for keeping this thread updated.

 

I used to race this car in SCCA PRO SOLO SP4 class in the late '80's and early '90's, hence the SOLOC4 moniker. Its been 32 years since I have driven competitively, so I am a bit rusty. Right after these shots were taken, the power steering pump seized up and I lost all power brakes and steering which ended my session. As far as driver? vs. builder?, I like to think of my self as a little bit of both. I have skills, but I wouldn't win any awards. I'm self taught, so I can't consider myself a professional, although I have been in aviation most of my life. The car on the other hand is far more capable than I am at the moment, but give me somemore seat time and I'll start ripping it up. You asked about specifics on the car. When I scaled it and set up the balance and alignment it weighed 3361 lb. with me in it (I weigh 230 lb.) with a 53/47 distribution and is within 9 pounds on the cross weight. In comparision, the car was 3254 lb. dry when it was shipped from the factory with a 60/40 distribution. The C4 suspension has a much more stable geometery in the front with the SLA setup and much more predictable in the rear with the IRS. The Corvette still has some advantages over what I have done here with a shorter wheel base (4 inches) and better weight distribution (51/49) due to the engine being 6 inches back. Overall it is an amazing machine. I really appreciate everyones continued interest in my car, I think it turned out great, but I'm a bit biased. It truly is the only one like it in existence.

 

I am in Aerospace myself. I am in manufacturing. Sounds like you are a lot better driver them me. Last time I was in a car with my F1 friend I about crapped my pants and that was in his stock street commuter car, Honda something. His Idea of a fun car is a Copper mini from the 60's with some BMW engine in it. He offered me a ride in it and I took one look at the harness on the drivers side and said no thank you.

 

Funny you should mention a Mini Cooper. My son has a daily driver R53 Mini S that he Auto Crosses with me. He beat me by 5 seconds on a 1+ minute course in our last session.

My son kicking my butt.

 

Brought home the “Best of Show” trophy from the Pacific Northwest “All Camaro” show. 150+ 1st - 6th generation Camaros and they chose mine as the best one at the show. It was an amazing honor and very unexpected. What a great experience.

 

That is awesome and well deserved!

 

I had a final tune done on my car. It needed some upper RPM work. It runs amazingly well now.
Strapped down and ready to go

468 rwhp/457 rwtq Not bad for NA and streetable.

 

I took my car to Las Vegas for LS Fest West 2025. Entered in Grand Champion which included drag racing, short track auto cross, long track auto cross, and 3S challenge. It was a great experience and I was solid mid pack with the dedicated racing teams with professional drivers taking the top third. It was a great road trip from Seattle to Las Vegas and back with my son. Once in a lifetime opportunity.

 

Ugly 40 year old plastic tanks

New PS reservoir and aluminum expansion tank


I had to redesign the hydraulic system for the rack and pinion with hydroboost. With the return lines teed it was back feeding pressure to the hydroboost and causing the brakes to drag at elevated temperatures and the steering would lose assist at low speeds and RPMs. The dual return reservoir seems to have cured both issues. While I was in there, I decided to replace the OEM plastic coolant tank with an aluminum tank.